Today is Sunday and the kids and I are leaving Maryland today to fly home. John and Jack are flying in today to bring Dream Catcher home with Dave. Jack is an old salt. Although he isn't old. He just has a lifetime of sailing experience. John is an adventurer and wanted to add something else to his resume of fun. The journey began with going up the Chesapeake, heading through the C&D canal and down the Delaware Bay. After ducking in to Cape May to wait out some bad weather, we headed out to a quiet sea with big rollies. After reviewing the forecast for the next 36 hrs, we decided to set sail (motor) and alter course to Block Island. This would be a 200 mile run and would save about 60 miles from the original course. During the passage our port engine started acting up and eventually quit all together. After spending several hours crouched down in my new cave, it was determined that we probably needed a new fuel pump. All I can say is I am glad I have 2 engines.
We arrived into Block Island in the middle of the night (can you say pitch dark) to pick up one of the many mooring balls. Were did they all go? Well it turns out that the season hasn't started down here yet and they take the balls out for the winter. After some poking around, we finally found a ball in about 5 feet of water and grabbed on for a night's rest. From there, we headed across to Point Judith to fuel up and made our way up Buzzards Bay with the hope of catching the tide just right in the Cape Cod Canal. For those who are not familiar with the Canal's current, it can move along at a speed of 3-4 knots and if you don't catch it right you might as well forget it.
We flew through the canal with a strong push from the current and reached the Eastern side around midnight. Our next waypoint was set for Cape Ann about 60 miles away. I took the first watch with Jack to relieve me at 3AM and John to come on at 6:00. We reached Cape Ann about 9AM and set our last waypoint for Portsmouth Harbor. The seas were calm with light winds for the remainder of the trip home. We could not have asked for a better day. John and I spent some time tidying up the boat while Jack ran the helm. We entered Portsmouth Harbor around 2:30 and made our way up the Piscataqua in short order. As we rounded the corner, we were excited to see the welcome crew of friends and family that Lisa had pulled together to celebrate our arrival home. It was a sight for sore eyes.
A special thanks goes to Jack and John for all there help in bringing Dream Catcher home. I could not have asked for a better crew